Promises
by Unbroken Promises
Summary: Natsume left for America, never contacting anyone except for his best friend, Ruka. Now he returns five years later, the world's richest and youngest CEO, will Mikan give him another chance? More than meets the eye, please read.
1. Chapter 1

**Promises**

**Disclaimer:** No matter how much I wish, Gakuen Alice is too good for me. :(

* * *

Mikan crossed her legs and leaned on her chin, breathing in the bittersweet aroma of freshly made coffee. She found her gaze wondering outside the window where people were scurrying around, some holding business folders and others carrying bulging shopping bags. Everyone was so engrossed in their own world.

Suddenly, Mikan found herself looking at someone distinctly familiar, someone she hadn't seen for exactly five years, someone with red eyes and ebony hair. It was a person that she hated.

_Natsume. _

Mikan's heart skipped a beat and she blinked. Immediately, the Natsume-look-alike disappeared amongst the crowd of people. Was it him? It couldn't be, right? Natsume had left Gakuen Alice and left for America five years ago and had never contacted anyone except for his best friend Ruka. It couldn't be him, definitely.

"Mikan, hello? Mikan!"

Sumire snapped her fingers impatiently in front of Mikan's face and raised an eyebrow expectedly.

"E-Eh, Permy?"

"Seriously, you had me worried for a moment there, were you doing your staring-off-into-space thing again? You know if you keep on doing that, you'll get into big trouble one day, and no one will be there to save you."

Mikan sheepishly laughed and quickly stirred the lukewarm coffee in front of her. She turned her head to find Hotaru looking at her with a mildly worried expression on her face.

"Hotaru, I'm fine, really," Mikan assured her.

"Who said I was worried," Hotaru snapped and looked away.

"Anyways, onto what I was saying," Sumire said, "I heard that Natsume's returned to Japan!"

Mikan gagged on her coffee and hurriedly put it back down on its saucer before she dropped the cup.

"What?" she exclaimed.

"Oh yeah, I forgot that you liked Natsume back when you were…what was it…sixteen. After he left, being the idiot you were and are, you kept on sending him those letters yet he never replied, not even once. You sent those pathetic things continuously for a good two years–"

"Permy!"

"Oh don't get so flustered–"

"PERMY!"

Sumire stopped and raised an eyebrow at Mikan who was gripping her cup tightly with trembling hands. Mikan looked down at the table and tried to ignore the unpleasant memories that came flooding back. She had finally learnt to forget Natsume, to let go, to forget him. Mikan had done everything to forget him; she stopped reading magazines in order to not see his sprawled face on every cover with thousands of featured articles on him. After many years, Mikan had finally forgotten about him.

And then now he returns.

Why did he have to leave? Why did he not even call her, not even once? Why didn't he respond to her letters and emails?

Why?

Mikan wiped away the angry tears prickling at her eyes and stood up, knocking her chair over. The clatter echoed in the now silent café, however Mikan couldn't care less right now.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not feeling too well, I'm going now," Mikan muttered and grabbed her bag before running out of the café, crashing into the door on her way out.

"Will she be alright?" Hotaru sighed.

* * *

Mikan pulled her blankets over her head and curled into a ball. Everything that she had tried to hard to forget came crashing back.

"_Do you really have to leave?" Mikan asked, tears at the edges of her eyes. Natsume tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, his warm hand brushing her cheek sending tingles down her spine. _

"_I'm sorry, but I have no choice," he murmured in his velvet voice and pressed her forehead to his chest. _

"_You'll forget about me," Mikan whispered and looked down. Pulling her chin up with a finger so that she was looking into his eyes, Natsume said, "You're wrong, I will never forget about you."_

"_Really?"_

"_Mikan, I love you. Don't move an inch and wait for me, I'll definitely be back. I promise."_

_Natsume leaned down and crushed his lips to Mikan's. He found his hands snaking through her hair and hers clenching his shirt tightly in response. Natsume took a step back before he lost himself and faced her, wiping a tear from her eye. _

"_I love you Mikan and I always will," he said. _

"_Promise?" _

"_Promise."_

_oOo_

_Mikan dialed his number for the hundredth time, however, as usual, it was switched off. She knew that Natsume was doing fine through Ruka, however, she still worried. Was there some reason to why he wasn't responding to her letters or her calls? He wasn't the type that went back on his word. Mikan's gaze landed on the TV where a news reporter was standing in front of the Hyuuga Corporations headquarters, a massive building with hundreds of thousands of windows and employees._

"_The renowned Hyuuga Corporation, under the new CEO Natsume Hyuuga, is rising from its fall when founder and former CEO, Kaoru Hyuuga, passed away. Stocks are rising and soon, Natsume Hyuuga will be the world's youngest and richest boss, not to mention his looks–"_

_Mikan pushed the off button on the remote and threw the pillow that she was hugging at the TV, which was now a blank screen of black. _

_Slowly standing up with her eyes a dull brown, Mikan tossed anything that reminded her of Natsume into a bag and took a lighter. _

_Mikan stepped outside where it was raining and turned the bag upside down, tipping its contents out into a pile on the ground. It took her a few times for the fire to finally catch, it was raining after all, and when it did, it burned through photos, letters, everything. The rain hammered down on the burning pile, however the fire didn't go out. At last, the fire swallowed the remains, only a charcoal mess remaining. As Mikan stood up, she suddenly noticed a glint in the pile of ashes. Frowning, she bent down and pushed aside a burnt piece of paper to reveal a necklace. It was the necklace Natsume had given her just before he'd left. _

"_As expected of something Natsume Hyuuga made," Mikan laughed bitterly and slipped the necklace into her pocket after a moment of indecision. Whether or not that was a good decision to keep the necklace, Mikan didn't know, but somehow, at that very moment, it felt right. _

Dangling the necklace in front of her, Mikan held it up to the light and watched it throw sparkles around her room. Mikan sighed and slipped it back into the box she kept it in before closing her eyes. Suddenly, a vibrating sound was to be heard and Mikan grabbed her phone to see the caller ID, Kokoro Yome (Director) in black letters and his face. Mikan pressed the green button and held the phone to her ear.

"Hello?"

"_Ah, Mikan! Come over to my office right now, I have something I need to discuss with you."_

"N-Now?"

"_I know it's already late, but this is urgent. Ok? Oh, I've got to go now, anyways, be at my office in ten minutes."_

Saying that, he hung up. Sighing, Mikan grabbed a jacket and hurried outside. It was chilly outside, her breath being a white fog. The moon was high in the sky surrounded by clouds and a row of streetlamps shone brightly in the darkness.

Hugging her jacket closer to herself, Mikan jogged into a building with the words 'Acting Stars' on it and pressed the lift button continuously. Although Hotaru always scoffed at her doing so, Mikan was sure that pressing it more _did _help make it arrive faster. Contrary to her theory, the lift arrived a few painstaking minutes later.

"So what did you want to talk to me about–" Mikan said as she entered the office. She stopped abruptly and lifted a wavering finger at the person next to Koko. The person was wearing a suit with a loose tie, his black hair messy and his crimson eyes as alluring as usual. He had his feet propped up on the table, a smirk on his face.

"Yo Mikan, did you miss me?"

* * *

_This is a prologue, giving you guys a taste on what the story's going to be like. Things will get more interesting in later chapters. _

_Continue or not?_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Disclaimer:** Gakuen Alice is too cool for me. ;) But of course, I've guessed that you guys have already worked that out.

Hope you enjoy.

* * *

Mikan slumped against the window and banged her head against it, a hollow echoing noise made.

"Mikan, you should already be incredibly grateful that I let you into my apartment and now you're damaging my window. Plus, you're already dumb enough, I don't need you losing more brain cells," Hotaru deadpanned and held up her invention to inspect it.

"But still! I can't get over how–"

"Being the idiot you are, you threw your phone at Natsume Hyuuga's face and ran out immediately after seeing him."

"Huh?! Are you serious?" Sumire exclaimed, looking up from her magazine and smacking her forehead in exasperation. "You really are an idiot. So, what are you going to do now?" Mikan looked up and tilted her head questioningly.

"What do you mean?"

"You're not just going to go back to his side, right?"

"Of course not! But…"

"But?"

"But there's one little problem…my phone's with him…"

oOo

"Are you sure _this _is where he lives?" Mikan hissed as she ducked behind the bushes with Hotaru and Sumire. She looked at the mansion that loomed over them with wide eyes. She had never thought mansions like this actually existed in Japan, but it seemed that they did. And what they were doing outside Natsume's mansion? They were currently in the middle of an extremely operation to retrieve Mikan's phone. Mikan and her two friends were crouched in the bushes outside Natsume's house, or to be more correct, outside Natsume's five-hundred metre garden.

"I'm positive," Sumire whispered. "Are you ready?" Mikan looked up and frowned.

"For what?"

Ignoring her question, Sumire sent a questioning glance at Hotaru who nodded and took out a large bag with a strange glint in her violet eyes.

After a series of protesting, running and chasing, Hotaru and Sumire had finally managed to get Hotaru's 'stick gloves' and 'stick shoes' onto Mikan, who was now in the midst of climbing the wall surrounding Natsume's mansion.

"Hotaruuuuu, I don't want to do this! I'll just get another phone!" Mikan cried and tried not to look down. Mikan was around twenty metres up, clinging to the wall.

"No, coming down is not an option, if you do come down, I will personally kill you. Plus, this is a good chance of getting over that bastard," Sumire said. "If there's any problem, you know all you have to do is contact us with Hotaru's panda earphones and we'll help you."

Mikan gulped and slid another inch up. Suddenly, there was a flash and the sound of a camera's click.

"Hotaru, did you just take a picture of me?" Mikan raged; looking down at Hotaru who was holding a camera with barely suppressed laughter. However, as soon as she looked down, Mikan immediately regretted it. Her stomach dropped and her legs went weak. Mikan had never been good with heights.

"I'm sorry," Hotaru said, not sounding at the least. "Your starfish pose was just too funny, don't worry, I'll show you when you get home."

"Hotaru you meanie."

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps was to be heard. Hotaru quickly stuffed her camera into her bag and looked around for the source.

"Hurry Mikan! I think the gatekeeper's coming!" Sumire whispered as she and Hotaru ducked behind the bushes.

"Guys, don't leave me!" Mikan cried and frantically tried to pull herself up quicker. She hurriedly slid up another few inches and smacked her hand over it. Then, she swung a leg over the wall and hauled herself up, managing to disappear over the wall just before the gatekeeper arrived.

"Strange, I definitely heard voices over here," the gatekeeper muttered to himself before walking away. Mikan let out a sigh of relief and slowly, she descended, somehow managing to fall the last few metres. Good thing that she landed on the grass, not the thorny rose bush next to her.

"Ow ow ow," Mikan whimpered and rubbed her back gingerly. Slipping the 'sticky gloves' and 'sticky shoes' off, Mikan looked around for an entrance and found one a few metres away from her, the door slightly ajar. Quickly pushing the door open a little and squeezing in, Mikan found herself in a large room full of plants. There were plants of all different kinds, vines, flowering plants, conifers, everything. Looking around, Mikan took a cautious step forwards, stepping on a vine that was sprawled over the floor. Mikan squeaked and immediately, her hands flew to her mouth, her eyes darting around for any sign of movement.

"Who's there?" someone asked and Mikan felt her heart skip a beat.

"I-I-I, sorry!" Mikan said, fumbling for words.

Mikan bit her lip and knocked her fist against her head, she was so stupid, she shouldn't have answered on instinct. She saw the shadow of a person approaching her and she looked around wildly for any hiding place. The person was nearing and all that was around Mikan were plants. Squeezing her eyes shut, Mikan dreaded what would come after she got found out.

"…Mikan…?"

Mikan snapped her eyes open and looked up to see a girl that resembled Natsume standing in front of her. It was a person she'd known, a person who had grown her hair long and it was held back with a red hairband that matched her eyes.

"Mikan!" Aoi squealed and flung herself onto Mikan, knocking over a few pot plants in the process. "Mikan, I haven't seen you in ages, ever since that devil of a brother dragged me to America, not saying that it wasn't fun there, it was, but I missed all you guys! Oh, and why _are_ you here?" Aoi blinked and faced Mikan. "Oh Mikan, you've become so beautiful. Eeeeek, I just sounded like a mother seeing her child for the first time or something. Oh sorry, I'm talking too much, aren't I? Come talk with me in my room."

"Wait, Aoi–"

Aoi grasped Mikan's wrist and dragged her out of the room, up several flights of stairs, passed hundreds of rooms and finally reached her room.

"Sit sit," Aoi said and ushered Mikan onto a seat. "Do you want me to call Natsume? I mean, you're here to see him, right?"

"No! I mean, no, I-I don't care about him any more." Mikan looked down and tried to ignore the awkward silence. "It's a long story."

Aoi grinned. "And we've got lots of time."

oOo

"So that's why Natsume didn't call you in America, I've always wondered why, but…but…" Aoi trailed off and chewed at her perfectly manicured nail.

"But what?" Mikan prompted while absentmindedly dropping sugar cubes into her cup of coffee. After a moment's of thought, Aoi shook her head and smiled at Mikan.

"It's nothing, by the way, do you want me to take you to Natsume's room now? I'm pretty sure that's where your phone is. Don't worry, he's not home."

"Oh…thanks." Mikan got up and followed Aoi out of the room. They passed thousands of rooms, corridors, artworks, butlers and maids on the way to Natsume's room.

"This place is huge," Mikan breathed and admired the ornate ceiling.

"Aoi-sama, there you are, your tutor, Youichi-sama, is here," a passing maid informed them and Aoi's eyes widened before a small blush made its way to her face.

"I'm sorry Mikan, I have to go, Natsume's room is just up the stairs, turn right and walk to the end," Aoi said as she walked after the maid. "Come visit sometime! I'll call you!"

Mikan laughed at Aoi's hilarious turning head forwards and backwards in order to see where she was going while talk. She made her way up the stairs and followed Aoi's directions. She stopped outside Natsume's room and felt her heart do a little dance in her heart. It was the first time she'd entered his room.

"This is stupid, I don't even care about him anymore," Mikan scoffed to herself and pushed the door open. The well-oiled door slid open without a sound, revealing a large spacious room, like all the others, however it was different.

Everything she saw and smelt reminded her of Natsume.

Scanning the room, Mikan looked for her phone, however instead of her phone, her eyes landed on the handmade doll Mikan had given him on his tenth birthday. No, it wasn't just one doll; it was a whole collection he had there. Walking over, Mikan realised that he had kept every doll that Mikan had given him. She took a step back and fumbled for the door handle. She found no door handle and instead, she crashed into someone behind her. The person steadied her with hands she knew too well.

_Natsume_

Shrugging the hands off, Mikan twisted her head slowly to see him behind her. His blood-red eyes penetrated through her and his expression was unusually serious. He was wearing a fitting black suit with a loose tie, similar to the one he wore yesterday. Although most other girls probably thought that the tie was purposely made loose, Mikan knew better. Natsume couldn't wear ties properly, therefore leaving it half-done, something that somehow made all girls fall head over heels over him.

"So you really did miss me, even coming to visit me," he drawled, a smirk sliding onto his face. Mikan scowled, she couldn't bear his cockiness.

"Who would miss _you_?" she lied, trying not to remember her pathetic self a few years back. "I'm going." Mikan turned around in a huff and made her way to the door, however Natsume grabbed her hand and pulled her back.

His hand was warm, like always, however Mikan didn't feel the tingle that she always had when his hand brushed hers. Instead, she felt a dull flat numbness.

"Don't touch me," Mikan said lowly, but it somehow turned out sounding like a squeak. She heard Natsume snort before he sighed and slipped something rectangular out of his pocket and into her hand. Mikan looked down to see her phone in her hand and she quickly shoved it into the pocket of her jeans before looking away.

_Why does he have to know me so well?_

_Damn._

"Aren't you going to thank me?" Natsume asked in an irresistibly low and husky voice.

"For what? Returning the phone that you stole?"

"I think that you forgot that this phone was thrown at my face."

"No it wasn't, you slit-eyed fox pineapple."

"…Pineapple…?"

"What? You have a problem with that? Your hair is just as spiky as a pineapple and whenever I think of you, it makes me want to puke."

That was another lie, Mikan loved pineapples, but he didn't have to know that. Another smirk made its way to his face.

"That's a lie, you love pineapples."

_Damn again, how did he know that?_

Mikan seethed for a moment before taking a deep breath.

"Natsume Hyuuga, you've become awfully friendly, talking to someone you didn't bother contacting for five years." Mikan brushed past Natsume and left the room.

oOo

Mikan knocked on the door and entered when she got Koko's word. Seeing Mikan hovering at the door, Koko's face brightened immediately and he quickly ushered her in. After getting Mikan seated, Koko took out a wad of paper and flicked through it, eyes scanning for something.

"D-Director, I'm sorry for running out yesterday," Mikan apologised. It was bad to get on Koko's bad side; after all, Koko was the one deciding whether or not she was suited to become an actor.

"It's fine, by the way Mikan, what do you think of tagging along on a shoot in a few weeks? I'm sure it'll greatly help you improve," Koko said and handed Mikan the wad of paper with a smile on his face.

"What's this?" Mikan asked.

"That's details on the shoot, like who is acting and the summary of the script. You don't have to read it, but for some background information, it'd be best to. I'll inform you on the details later."

Mikan nodded and slipped the papers into her bag. She hoped they wouldn't get crumpled.

"Is that all you wanted?" she asked.

"Mmhmm oh, and by the way, what is your relationship with Natsume?"

After a few moments of thought, Mikan answered, "He's my enemy."

Koko stroked his non-existent beard and scratched his head after that. "That would be troublesome as your boss is Natsume."

* * *

_Sorry if this story is not up to your expectations :( _

_But that's because it's me writing it. __Also, do you guys prefer Mikan to be an actor or singer? There's a poll you can vote on my profile. __And lastly, thanks for reading! Drop a review, please? :))_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

* * *

_Disclaimer: Really now? U guys think I'm cool enough to own Gakuen Alice?_

_As always, hope you enjoy! 19/10/12_

* * *

_Boss, huh?_

Mikan slumped against the window and weakly banged her head against the window, jerking a little at the hollow sound it made.

"Why is this happening again? You two are at my apartment _again_," Hotaru said and pointed a slender finger at Sumire and Mikan before taking a sip of her tea. "Mikan is damaging my window _again _and losing brain cells _again_. This is ridiculous."

"But still! I can't get over how–"

"That bastard, Natsume Hyuuga is your boss."

"Lol, it really is happening again, Hotaru finishing Mikan's sentence," Sumire piped in and Hotaru shot her a glare which immediately shut her up. Turning her head back to Mikan, Hotaru placed her cup down on the saucer.

"Look, I know you're an idiot, but how on earth did you not know that Hyuuga was your boss?" Hotaru said stonily. She had never liked nor supported Mikan's love for that Hyuuga guy, she had only let him go near her with the condition that he would never make Mikan cry. And now look what he had done. Hotaru gripped the handle of her teacup tighter at the thought of that disgusting bastard.

"I don't know!" Mikan whined in answer to Hotaru's question and slumped her head on her knees pitifully. It seemed that Hotaru's window was her emo corner and Hotaru didn't like it one bit.

"Why don't you just quit being an actor or find another agency?" Sumire suggested flippantly and flicked another page of the magazine she was reading.

"I don't want to find another agency, Acting Stars is the best acting agency in the whole of Tokyo," Mikan cried and lolled her head against the window.

"Then just find another occupation. And by the way, you're acting like a drunk."

"I don't want to either, it had always been my dream to become an actor!"

"So you're going to stay put then?" Hotaru said, looking at Mikan, who nodded glumly.

"I mean, I don't care about him anymore, I won't let him get in the way of my life. I'm not going to let him toy with me anymore." Saying that, the light came back into Mikan's eyes and she stood up with new fire in her eyes. She looked outside the window and pressed a hand onto the window, gazing at the people below. She watched the cars zoom about and the skyscrapers loom over the scurrying people.

She wouldn't let Natsume get to her anymore.

Mikan smiled bitterly and clenched her hand into a fist.

_Natsume, just you see, I'm not the Mikan you left behind five years ago. _

…

Mikan returned to her apartment, well, not really _her _apartment, more like the apartment Acting Stars supplied her as being a possible future actor. It was a privilege given to all under the wing of Acting Stars. It wasn't really like an apartment, more like a really big room with a kitchen, bathroom and bedroom. It was a three-in-one room. Shaking her head at the funny thought, Mikan stepped into the lift and waited a few seconds before the lift doors opened at her level. Making her way to her room, Mikan fished out her key and slid it into the keyhole. The door swung open to reveal her cozy room and Mikan immediately made a beeline to the balcony.

Swinging open the door, a cool breeze swept up Mikan's hair and immediately cleared her mind. Mikan spread her arms out to catch the wind before smiling to herself.

She really loved this place.

"Enjoying yourself?" someone drawled in a voice that reminded Mikan so much of Natsume.

_It couldn't be, right?_

Mikan nodded to herself confidently and looked to her right only to see Natsume leaning on the railing of the balcony beside Mikan's. He had a smirk on his face as he watched Mikan's expression.

She was horrified, her mouth an impressive 'o' shape.

"What are _you _doing here?" she hissed darkly, the good mood instantly blown away. Natsume pretended to look surprised, however the smirk was still there, reminding Mikan of how much she loathed him.

"Why are you asking me what I'm doing in my own home?"

"_Your _home? I thought you lived in that humongous mansion of yours."

"Well, starting from today, this is my home."

"And who said that?"

"I did, did you forget? _I'm _the boss."

This guy really was getting on her nerves. Mikan took a deep breath and swallowed.

"Fine then, do whatever you want, I don't care," she called carelessly and Natsume's smirk faltered a little. Feeling a bust of satisfaction, Mikan walked back into her room.

…

Mikan flipped through the wad of papers Koko had given her on acting and the media. There was so much to learn, she had never known being an actor needed so much training and skills. Mikan glanced at the clock while leaning back and stretching, knocking over a pencil tin.

It was late.

Yawning, Mikan stood up and artfully weaved in and out of the books and toys sprawled on the floor. Suddenly, a burst of fireworks in the sky caught her attention. Eyes shining, Mikan burst onto the balcony to see the fireworks illuminating the night sky, their explosions echoing in the crisp night air.

"Wow!" Mikan breathed and clutched at the balcony railing. Another firework shot up into the sky and exploded into thousands of tiny lights. It was so romantic.

"Do you like it?"

Mikan turned her head to see Natsume walk onto the balcony, an energy drink in his hand. He was wearing a loose grey shirt that somehow emphasised his robustness and a pair of tracksuit pants. Even in casual clothes, Mikan had to admit that he looked good.

"What are you doing up so late?" he drawled in a velvet voice and tipped the remains of the drink into his mouth. Scrunching up the can, Natsume chucked it over the balcony.

"What are you doing?!" Mikan cried and looked down to see the can sail gracefully into an open bin. "Oh."

Natsume smirked and leaned on the railing, looking at the sky. The wind ruffled his soft black hair and the moon was reflected in his crimson eyes.

"So, what _are_ you doing at this hour?" he asked.

"I could ask the same thing for you," Mikan snapped impatiently. There was a pause and Mikan shifted uncomfortably, suddenly aware of the silence. Then, his smooth voice returned, breaking the silence.

"Mikan, do you hate me?"

Mikan's eyes widened and she looked over at Natsume to see a wistful and almost pained expression in his eyes. Her heart softened for a moment, however her new self kicked in and she rolled her eyes.

"Isn't that obvious?"

…

Hotaru crossed her legs underneath the chair and waited few minutes before tipping the tea out of the decorated teapot and into her cup. The rich fragrance of gyokuro green tea immediately filled the room, a satisfied smile slipping onto Hotaur's face. Expensive tea was expensive for a reason.

"And what is this emergency meeting you called all of us here for?" Hotaru sighed and sniffed the tea before raising it to her lips. Tapping a finger on the handle, she waited for Aoi to stop squirming and begin talking. Seriously, she didn't have to call _everyone _and everyone meaning Anna, Nonoko, Nogi, Iinchou, Sumireand even _Youichi. _Large amounts of people annoyed Hotaru. What did Youichi have much to do with Mikan anyways?

"Well, I find that it is a major crisis that Onii-chan and Mikan are on bad terms," Aoi piped, leaning on the edge of her chair nervously.

"And why wouldn't they be?" Sumire asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Because I think Onii-chan still loves Mikan!" Aoi blurted out and the room immediately went silent.

"That's stupid," Sumire scoffed.

"It's not, I've always thought so too," Ruka said and every pair of eyes turned to him and he blushed bright red. "W-Well, Natsume called me in America and he always worded his questions about Mikan in a way that wouldn't make people think he was asking about her, but I'm his best friend so I can tell."

"What if it's just that you're mistaken?" Hotaru pointed out.

"I don't think so!" Aoi hurriedly cried and the spotlight was on her. Unlike Ruka, she didn't turn red; she kind of liked the attention. "Because I found Natsume's phone and because he never let me play with his phone, I decided to just mess with his phone a little. However, in that process, I found a whole heap of unsent replies to Mikan's texts. I had always thought it was weird, but I didn't know that…yea…"

Hotaru put down her cup, letting the clatter echo in the room, and stood up.

"Well, if Hyuuga supposedly still loved Mikan, then why didn't he call her or send those unsent texts?" Hotaru's face was blank, she allowed no emotion whatsoever on her face, and that just made it the more intimidating.

"I-I don't know, but I think it was something to do with Mother. He had to go to America in the first place because of her and, and, he's always in a bad mood whenever he comes out of Mother's office."

"And you think Mikan will become all cozy with Hyuuga now because of the idea that Hyuuga still loves Mikan."

"I-I don't think so!" Aoi gulped and tried to ignore Hotaru standing over her before continuing. "That's why I'm want you guys to help me set those two up."

…

Natsume woke up at 6am on the dot as usual. Running his fingers through his hair, Natsume shrugged on a black jacket and pair of jeans before leaving. As he passed Mikan's door, he stopped for a brief moment, but then changed his mind and continued.

Natsume walked outside the 'Acting Stars' dorm to see the sleek black car waiting for him. A man in a black suit, Yamamoto, quickly got out of the car and opened the door for Natsume. Nodding a curt 'thanks', Natsume got in. After a few minutes of silent travelling in the car, Natsume's phone suddenly vibrated and the 'new text' sign popped up. It was from Ruka.

_Natsume r u free right now?_

Natsume quickly replied with a 'yea, why?'

_Meet at WcDonald's?_

Natsume texted a 'sure' and leaned back on the leather seat.

"Yamamoto," he said. "Drop me off at the next intersection."

…

"Hurry up," Hotaru snapped and strutted down the street, her heels clacking against the ground and her skirt fluttering slightly in the wind. From the back, Hotaru was elegant and tall, like the models you can only see in magazines. Her back was straight and her long legs showed off by the skirt Hotaru had chosen to wear today. Hotaru looked incredibly beautiful, especially with her elegant black jacket with diamonds artfully sewn here and there and the earrings brought out the purple in her eyes, captivating all those who looked into them.

"Did you possibly dress up for Ruka-pyon?" Mikan teased and chased after Hotaru who snorted and quickened her pace so Mikan and her shorter legs couldn't catch up. Why did Hotaru have to have such long legs?

"Don't be an idiot," Hotaru scoffed.

"Mmmmm…so you did dress up for him!"

"Mikan, stop acting like a retard. Anyways, why did you wear _jeans_?" Hotaru looked down disdainfully at Mikan's dark blue jeans and wrinkled her nose.

"Hey! What's wrong with jeans? Plus, I don't need to dress up for a certain someone!"

Mikan smirked at Hotaru's death glare and skipped happily after her.

"Hotaruuu, why am I tagging along your date anyways?" she asked as Hotaru walked through the automatic sliding doors of WcDonald's.

"Because," Hotaru said, "it's a double date."

Mikan stopped and raised an eyebrow.

"With who?" Mikan cautiously asked.

Hotaru pointed to the table over to their right with Ruka on one side and Natsume on the other.

_Natsume?!_

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_Thanks for reading! _

_Feel free to press that lovely 'review' button below. _

_;)_


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

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_Disclaimer: Gakuen Alice is mine. Yea, as if. Of course, I don't own GA. :(_

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Saying that Mikan was surprised was a major understatement. Her mouth jaw fell open and her eyes were as round as saucers. She looked incredibly funny, however Hotaru was in no mood to laugh; it was time for the _mission _to commence.

"Mikan, get your butt over there," Hotaru said and walked over to the table and took a seat beside Ruka. Turning her head, Hotaru saw Mikan robotically make her way to the table. Eyeing the seat next to Natsume, Mikan frowned and pulled the chair away so that she was a good metre away from him. Sitting down, Mikan leaned over to Hotaru.

"What is the meaning of this?" she hissed darkly and glared at Natsume who seemed equally as shocked as she was, well, as shocked as he could look.

"Excuse me," Hotaru said, ignoring Mikan, and called a waiter. "I'd like a small fish burger."

_Hotaru had the nerve to–_

"And you miss?" the waiter asked pleasantly, turning to Mikan who was bristling in anger.

"I'll have a large cheeseburger meal with a chocolate shake," Mikan said through gritted teeth and glared at Hotaru who brushed it off.

"Pig," Natsume muttered, however Mikan heard it and shot him a death glare. Coolly looking away, Natsume leaned back in his chair and ordered a can of coke when the waiter turned to him. There was an awkward silence when the waiter left.

"U-Umm…so…how's your weekend so far?" Ruka piped, trying to break the silence.

"Horrible," Mikan replied immediately, remembering the fact that Natsume had moved in next to her.

"Mine was horrible too, I had to put up with the snores of the pig over here," Natsume drawled and smirked at Mikan's glare.

"This is _not _going to plan," Hotaru thought to herself and rubbed her temples. How come the 'golden couple' back in high school were bickering like 40 year old married couples.

"I do _not _snore, you probably confused your snores with my _silent _sleeping–"

"_Silent_?" Natsume snorted and leaned forwards so that Mikan had a very clear view of his ruby red eyes. The way they penetrated right through her made a shiver go down her spine. "Don't make me laugh."

For a moment, his deep husky voice entranced Mikan, however she shook out of it and prepared a snarky retort.

"Who would want–" she began, however was only to be cut off by the arrival of their orders. Her stomach immediately growled at the sight of her beloved cheeseburger meal and shake. She heard Natsume stifle a laugh and she turned a dark shade of crimson before looking away.

…

"Ahh! I'm so full!" Mikan laughed while skipping out of WcDonald's. She spun around to see the rest of them filing out, the auto sliding doors closing and shutting rhythmically.

"Snoring full pig," Natsume said as he came out, earning a death glare from Mikan that didn't seem to work the way she had wanted it to.

"So, since this a double date–" Ruka began.

"I agree that you and Hotaru are on a date, but I am _just _tagging along. That jerk over there and I are definitely definitely _not _going on a date," Mikan said through gritted teeth, her face darkening at the mere thought of a double date.

"Oi Polka Dots, don't think I'm happy that I have be around you for who-knows-how-long," Natsume said and slipped on a pair of aviator sunglasses.

"What," Mikan asked, pointing a finger at Natsume. "Are you doing?"

He raised an eyebrow.

"Firstly, it's sunny, if you didn't realise," Natsume drawled and pointed to the blazing sun, as if he needed to prove his point. "And secondly, everyone knows who I am, so I don't want tons of fans rushing up to me, so sunglasses come in handy."

"Cocky idiot," Mikan muttered under her breath.

"You two, stop bickering like couples do and follow me," Hotaru said and waved a taxi over. She slid into the front seat self-importantly and Mikan was forced to squish with the boys at the back.

"The smallest should sit in the middle," Ruka said while opening the car door and bowing dramatically. Mikan ducked down to see Natsume already in the car, claiming one of the window seats for himself. He had no expression whatsoever on his face and was looking outside. Mikan backtracked a few steps and shook her head.

"There is _no _way I'm sitting in the middle," she said firmly and Ruka grinned apologetically before giving her a tiny shove into the car. Mikan fell in and Ruka quickly slid in after her, shutting the door behind him.

Mikan was stuck in the middle.

She could feel Natsume's arm pressing against hers, his warmth making her heart beat unreasonably faster and an even more unreasonable blush inch onto her face. She was too close to him for her liking; her personal space was definitely being violated, however she couldn't do anything about it. Mikan's heart skipped a beat when Natsume's legs bumped hers when he shifted them.

_This is ridiculous. _

Mikan took a few deep breaths to calm herself, suddenly realising the incredibly awkward silence that hung heavily in the carl even the driver was a little distressed. Looking up at Natsume, Mikan frowned.

_What's with this guy? I swear he's a girl, he has massive mood swings. One moment he's smirking his head off and the next moment, he's so silent it's making me crazy. _

Up close, Mikan suddenly noticed his long dark lashes, strong jawline and straight nose. His eyes were an alluring deep crimson that had so much depth in them. Sensing Mikan's gaze on him, Natsume turned and red eyes locked with brown ones.

"What?" he asked curtly.

"Nothing."

"You were looking at me."

It was a statement, not a question.

"No I wasn't," Mikan denied.

"Yes you were."

"No I wasn't–"

"Do you two have to argue every time you see each other?" Hotaru snapped and looked expectantly at Ruka who blushed and fumbled for his wallet before quickly handing a wad of notes to the driver.

As expected of Hotaru, she could manage to avoid every situation that needed her to dig into her stash of money.

"Thanks," Ruka called to the driver before opening the door and stepping out. Mikan quickly followed, relieved to finally be able to breathe normally. Mikan stretched, however was interrupted by a husky voice right next to her ear.

"Did you like the car trip?" Natsume whispered in her ear, his warm breath sending tingles down Mikan's spine. Mikan let out a yelp and jumped back. Natsume smirked and Mikan immediately elbowed him before walking away. A few seconds later, she heard Natsume's footsteps catching up to her in no time. Soon, he was right behind her.

"Jeez, what was that for?" he said.

"It was for being a jerk."

"Hn."

Suddenly, Hotaru, who was leading the way, stopped abruptly causing Mikan to crash into her.

"We're here," Hotaru announced smugly and slipped on a pair of designer sunglasses.

Even before Mikan looked up, she had already realised it was a beach. The distant shrill cry of the seagulls resounded in the air and there was a faint salty tang in the air.

"The beach!" Mikan exclaimed and looked around with her eyes wide and bright. A few hundred metres in front of her were a row of palm trees and beyond them was the shimmering blue water of the ocean.

"Beach beach! Hotaru, it's the beach!" Mikan laughed and jumped up and down.

Hotaru sighed. "Yes I know it's the beach, now follow me."

Mikan nodded and bounded after Hotaru who was walking towards a street full of shops bursting with people.

"You're such a kid," Natsume scoffed, however Mikan was in too high spirits to care. And why exactly was she so excited over a beach? It was because she had only been to a beach twice before. Skipping along the pebbled road, Mikan followed Hotaru into a high class-looking air-conditioned shop that had the large words 'Swimsuits' in fancy cursive writing imprinted at the front.

"Welcome," a line of immaculately dressed attendants chorused and bowed in sync with each other "How may we help you?"

Hotaru waved them off with a dismissive flick of her hand and strutted in with her head held high. Seeing that Mikan was still hovering at the door, she beckoned for Mikan to follow her. Hurrying to the rack of swimsuits where Hotaru was standing, Mikan nervously glanced around her to see the pleasant yet somehow unnerving identical smiles of the attendants.

"Hotaru, this place is creepy," Mikan whispered to Hotaru who ignored her and critically examined the swimsuits in front of her. Mikan looked around to see Ruka and Natsume being surrounded by a bunch of girls tugging at their shirts and competing with each other for the two guys attention. Scoffing at their popularity, Mikan turned back to see Hotaru walking to Mikan with an attendant whose arms were full with a pile of swimsuits beside her. Hotaru pushed Mikan into a change room and gave the attendant a sharp order to put all the swimsuits inside.

"I'm going to try on _all _of these?" Mikan asked incredulously and pointed at the pile of swimsuits.

"Yes, now hurry up," Hotaru said before slamming the door shut.

Mikan hurriedly grabbed the swimsuit on the top of the pile and was horrified to find that it was a two-piece. Mikan rummaged through the pile of swimsuits and realised that Hotaru had only gotten her a whole bunch of two-pieces. Quickly hauling the door open, Mikan found Hotaru sitting patiently on a chair.

"You're done?" Hotaru asked and eyed Mikan who was still fully dressed before raising an eyebrow. "Or not."

"Hotaru! Why are these all bikinis?!" Mikan exclaimed and the room suddenly went silent, every pair of eyes on Mikan who was turning bright red. Even Natsume and Ruka were looking her way. Hotaru raised an eyebrow.

"There are no one-pieces in this shop, as you can see, this is not some competitive swimming shop. Now stop yelling your head off and hurry up and change, I don't have until tomorrow."

Mikan glared at Hotaru and reluctantly disappeared into the change rooms again. Hotaru sighed; her best friend was sometimes impossible, not saying that Hotaru herself would get in a bikini.

"Hotaru, Natsume and I are done, is it okay if we wait for you and Mikan on the beach?" Ruka called and Hotaru gave him an uninterested nod. Turning her gaze back to the change rooms, she noticed Mikan peeking out from a crack in the door.

"Idiot, what are you doing? Hurry up and get out," Hotaru said. After a moment of thought, Mikan slowly pushed the door open and stepped out shyly. Hotaru quickly scanned her best friend from up to bottom and a small smile made its way to lips.

"Good, now let's go."

…

Natsume was waiting in the blazing sun with Ruka, his feet being burned by the scorching golden sand. It was a nice beach, a long strip of golden sand and the shimmering blue ocean in the distant, however Natsume hated waiting and waiting in the sun just put him in an even worse mood. Sensing his foul mood, Ruka shifted nervously beside him.

"N-Natsume?"

He grunted and crossed his arms.

"U-Um, do you want me to get you a drink?" Ruka asked tentatively. Natsume scowled at the crab which crawled beside him.

"No, I just want the two women to hurry up."

Ruka sighed. He shielded his eyes against the sun and looked up to see Mikan and Hotaru making their way towards them.

"They're here!" Ruka exclaimed and walked up to greet them. Natsume, unlike Ruka, took his sweet time in ambling to them, his hands in his pockets. He heard Mikan's sweet voice ringing out amongst the sea of sounds. Natsume looked up to see Mikan in an orange and white two-piece, the type which didn't show too much skin, yet wasn't joined so it couldn't be counted as a one-piece. It suited Mikan.

Natsume's heart skipped a beat, however he made sure that not even a sliver of emotion passed onto his face.

Mikan looked beautiful.

He noticed that Mikan had let her hair down; her silky chestnut locks tumbling over her shoulder and stopping halfway down her back. Her skin looked so smooth and milky pale, giving her that fragile look which she seemed to despise so much. She seemed to not like showing her weaknesses in front of others.

Suddenly, Mikan spun around and Natsume quickly averted his gaze to the palm tree in the distance. Mikan smirked, probably at the thought that she had caught the all mighty Natsumelooking away.

"You know, did you mature at all since elementary school?" Natsume scoffed quickly to cover up his blunder and pointed at Mikan's flat chest to prove his point. Mikan glared at him.

"Well _sorry_ I'm not like those 'beach beauties'!" she spat and crossed her arms angrily. Natsume sighed and after a few seconds, he leaned forwards to whisper in Mikan's ear.

"Just joking," he said softly in her ear, "you look nice today." He smirked at Mikan's flushed cheeks before sauntering off, shrugging off the girls which managed to attach themselves to him.

"What's with him?" Mikan muttered and tried to ignore the heat rising into her cheeks. "He's too confusing."

...

Mikan tentatively waded into the water, jerking a little at the coldness, however after a few minutes, she got used to it. She splashed the water around her, laughing at the droplets that flew into her eyes. Turning towards the beach, she waved her arms.

"HOTARUUUU!" she shouted. Hotaru looked up from the pamphlet she was holding and gave Mikan a small nod in acknowledgement. Sighing, Mikan turned back and dived into the water. Relinquishing the coolness of the water against her cheek, Mikan dove deeper into the water. Every stroke increased the distance between her and the shore.

Swimming was so wonderful. Mikan loved every aspect of it, especially the way she was so graceful in the water, unlike she was on land. The feeling of the water slipping past you as you cut through it and to be able watch tiny fish dart in and out of the jagged rocks all added to Mikan's love of swimming. Her brown hair swirled out in front of her and a few more bubbles left her mouth. There was a vague sensation of her chest tightening, indicating that it was time to return to the surface. Kicking up, Mikan suddenly felt a sharp pain shoot up her leg.

There was a fire ripping at her calf and it felt so tight.

_So tight. _

Mikan's eyes widened in shock and suddenly, she realised that she was having a leg cramp in the middle of the ocean. Mikan's hand shot to her leg as another painful spasm occurred and she frantically tried to break to the surface. She could see the light shimmering above, however she just couldn't reach it.

_I'm going to die. I'm going to die because of a cramp. _

Mikan would have laughed at that thought if her mouth wasn't so full of salty seawater. Mikan's lungs burned and her vision blurred, she was tiring rapidly, she couldn't hold on much longer. Everything became dizzy, the water became a blur of blue and darkness was taking over her vision. Just before the darkness completely took over, Mikan glimpsed a flash of red.

…_Natsume…?_

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_Suggestions, critiques? Fire away ;)_

_Btw, because of the coming yearlies and assignments, I will not be able to update for the next month or so. _

_Sorry guys ;v;_

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_Unbroken Promises _

_24/10/12_


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